Making waves: Small satellites are fuelling the imagination of space scientists globally; (below) India is following suit in a big way

When the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) made an announcement that an opportunity existed for a small satellite mission dedicated only to scientific experiments in the area of astronomy and astrophysics, there was a mad scramble among nearly a dozen research bodies to get on board. The response, says ISRO chairman G Madhavan Nair, was unprecedented.

“We never thought we will be flooded with offers by universities and organisations wanting to further basic science research, that too in one particular discipline,” Nair says, surprised and happy over the realisation that all’s not over for Indian astrophysical research.

The announcement, inviting proposals from the Indian scientific community for suitable payloads for ISRO’s small satellite platforms, follows the successful implementation of science payloads on earlier missions like SROSS-C2, IRS-P3, GSAT-2 in the last decade, as also upcoming dedicated science missions like Chandrayaan-1, ASTROSAT and Megha Tropiques. “The main purpose of these missions has been to develop space-borne experimental techniques and carry out systematic observations to meet defined scientific objectives. Now we plan to launch a dedicated small satellite mission in the 100 kg class for space science research,” Nair says.

From studies in infra red astronomy to ultra violet radiations, radiowaves and galactic halos to X-Ray astronomy — scientists have pitched for a variety of projects. “They don’t have to wait for a big satellite anymore......they can simply fly on their own and conduct their experiments,” says Dr S C Chakravarty, programme director for the the nearly Rs 100 crore project at ISRO’s space science office.

Chakravarty says the mission was aimed at giving a major platform to universities and organisations which have always been deeply involved in basic astrophysical sciences but had never been able to realise their dream of getting involved in a space science mission directly. “This will be an opportunity for scientists who have been toiling in their labs for years and have only got peer reviews or grants for further research at the end of the day. This will be their big chance to get their work on board a satellite and send it to space for research purposes,” he contends.

The 100 kg small satellite carrying three research payloads is proposed to be propelled into orbit via a Geo-Synchronous Launch Vehicle (GSLV).

Two multi-institutional proposals for small satellites to study the atmosphere and ionosphere have already been given the green signal. The Advisory Committee on Space Sciences headed by scientist U R Rao is currently evaluating 11 proposals relating to astronomy, of which only one will be finally selected within the next two months.

The committee will draw up its short list on the basis of the proposing team’s science objectives, their compatibility with the small satellite programme's requirements, the feasibility of the experiment, the expertise and experience of the proposing team, developmental plans and delivery schedule. The payloads will also have to include power connectors and data handling systems.

Physicists are seeing this as a grand opportunity to further Indian astronomical studies. Says Prof Sandip Chakrabarti of the S N Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, “The mission will answer many hitherto unanswered questions in astrophysics and astronomy. This is a programme any scientist worth his salt would dream to be on.” Chakrabarti, who also sent in a proposal on behalf of the Calcutta-based Centre for Space Physics to design three payloads dedicated to the study of black holes, is looking forward to the announcement of which project will win, like many of his peers across the country.

His project, a strong contender, hopes to dwell upon the most important physical property of the black holes — their boundary conditions.

At the Atlanta-based Georgia State University’s physics and astronomy department, Paul J Wiita says the idea of an Indian satellite mission focused on astrophysics and astronomy was very exciting. “Other missions have much broader purviews and therefore do not provide as much information about specific areas like the many facets of the cosmic environment. This is going to be a chance to dig harder.”

Veteran astrophysicist Lev Titarchuk of NASA’s Goddard flight Centre sees this as an opportunity for the global astrophysical community to study newer phenomena in the vast reaches of the galactic expanse. “This certainly is a mission worth taking note. We will be looking forward to the data generated from the project,” he says.